What I Want to See in Dishonored: The Brigmore Witches DLC

I’ve been doing with Dishonored what any decent gamer would do with a game they love: play the hell out of it. I already have the Dunwall City Trials DLC(and have gone over 225,000 points in Back Alley Brawl before getting bored – I don’t have THAT much time in my hands) and The Knife of Dunwall, woken up to the chorused humming of the bone charms of The Void Walker’s Arsenal in Corvo’s room, and gave a brief personal review of the game itself on my blog, which says a LOT because that blog is nearly dead with very few new posts.

But I miss Delilah. The wait for The Brigmore Witches is killing my Dishonored drive. I suppose that’s the challenge DLCs face: the wait time. Wait too short and it might not be worth the money. Wait too long and the hype might die down. So I cooked up a few things I wanted to see in The Brigmore Witches DLC:

A New Character

There is an interesting piece of paper in the Dishonored game that might be a telltale indicator of The Brigmore Witches DLC’s story: The Brigmore Job. In it, Daud chastises an assassin named Rinaldo about not following orders during an assignment, while also reassuring him that along with the transversal ability called Blink, he might also have inherited some resistance to poisons from Daud. These ought to come in handy as he was sent to infiltrate and deal with the Brigmore Witches.

Since it appears that in between The Knife of Dunwall and The Brigmore Witches, Daud will get his destined visit from Corvo, then we have ourselves a Schrodinger’s Cat scenario here: Daud is either alive or dead, meaning he might or might not be spearheading the assault on the Brigmore mansion. The developers promise some closure for Daud’s story, however, so perhaps the DLC will proceed favoring the scenario where Corvo spares Daud.

Regardless, this makes some wiggle room for a new character. Billie Lurk, like Daud, is either dead or alive by this time, so why not pitch in someone new and equally deep as Corvo or Daud? Like Rinaldo?

Some background lore already set in the Dishonored universe can lend some extraordinary depth to this new character: the book Rumors and Sighting: Daud, where the author – an overseer from the Abbey of the Everyman – wants to infiltrate Daud’s shadowy Whalers group by earning his trust. Personally, I would like for Rinaldo to be this overseer on a personal mission. It opens up the Dishonored world to another party’s point of view. The first game was played through the eyes of Corvo and the Loyalists, the second one was through Daud and the Whalers, so why not the Overseers? Why, we might even get to see The Sisters of the Oracular Order – after all, the enemies are witches. Why should Dishonored be an all-male party? Billie Lurk already made sure there’s enough space for the right woman.

The best part is how Rinaldo’s options play out: he’s an overseer, but he’s dedicated to the path of the assassin to gain Daud’s trust. Will he be true to the seven scriptures? Will he end up killing Daud (if Corvo hadn’t already)? Will he end up respecting Daud? Will he get a surprise visit from The Outsider, the sworn enemy of the Abbey? This theoretical background of Rinaldo is a perfect match for the title: Dishonored.

Hey, and a new character might mean new (or new versions) of powers and gear.

A Few New Stages

The Brigmore Mansion is a no-brainer, but just one mansion – even if it’s as big as Dunwall Tower – won’t cut it. A few more missions and two or three more new stages would be nice. The DLC will probably explore one already existing level using a new character’s perspective, like how we played through the Whaler’s base as Daud in The Knife of Dunwall.

A Story that Maximizes the Lore

If this Rinaldo – or any other new character, for that matter – does make it to The Brigmore Witches DLC, the lore behind the world of Dishonored should be fully fleshed out this time, I hope. Even our official review of Dishonored cites this as one of the flaws of the game. Dunwall is rich in history and its potential as an engaging world is vast, but it was wasted on Corvo’s rather predictable storyline. Daud’s story is more promising in this department, so I sincerely hope The Brigmore Witches DLC maximizes the world’s lore more.

More Awesome Boss Fights

Did you fight Admiral Havelock as Corvo in the game? I have a saved game right before the point where I fight him. The problem is, he doesn’t put up much of a fight. He’s tough as nails and his gun has unlimited ammo, but when I play with him I just parry his strikes, blink away when he shoots, and throw glasses and wine bottles at him for fun. The problem is, IT’S NOT FUN.

The ultimate boss of Dishonored is Daud (no, Granny Rags was weird, but not ultimate), and the saved game I have before I fight him gets loaded a LOT. He’s a joy to fight against especially in the two higher levels, akin to a Devil May Cry 3 Dante versus Virgil fight, but in first person. The problem is, HE’S THE ONLY AWESOME BOSS OF THE GAME. The mute torturer was pretty tough too, but he wasn’t the great assassin Daud. Billie Lurk of The Knife of Dunwall had some unique fighting abilities, but against Daud, she really was no match. The Daud you fight in wave 13 of Back Alley Brawl is a pushover, however, and luckily so because he is the key to actually beating that “infinite” wave, if you have “infinite” time.

Seeing how the Brigmore witches not only have similar void abilities but also their own arsenal of poison-laced weaponry and potentially destructive and manipulative spells, I expect one or two promising boss fights in the second DLC. Think God of War II Kratos against the sisters of fate, only in first person.

Closure

The foremost closure I want to see is how Daud’s story ties up – does he get redemption or find peace? Does the destruction of the Brigmore Witches help the already ailing city of Dunwall? Beyond that, however, I also want to see how the DLC’s timeline matches the timeline of Corvo’s last few missions where he dispatches the three masterminds of the Loyalists.

Delilah said that big changes were afoot, and that Daud had best not interfere. Boy, if there was a better way to perform reverse psychology on a supernaturally endowed assassin seeking redemption, I don’t know what it is. Do these “big changes” tie in with the chaos that the city is experiencing due to the rat plague and the constant shifting of power? How will Daud’s ending tie in with Corvo’s?

It might be too much to ask to see Corvo and Daud fighting together, but hey, I can dream, can’t I?

Well, time will tell how the Dishonored: The Brigmore Witches DLC will turn out. Hopefully, it’s much better than we expect. It would be a bad time to dish out weak DLCs now.

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Author

G Dino (Gino R. Diño) is a freelance writer who loves gaming, reading, and writing - in that order. His first game was an R-Type side scrolling NES game that is so old he doesn't even remember its title. Now he plays anything from Restaurant Empire to Skyrim to Battlefield to Plants Vs. Zombies, as long as the game is worth his time in one or several aspects. He writes about gaming, technology, anime, and entertainment. Visit his personal blog Xeroavitar or contact him via [email protected].

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